Charles D. Kaier

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Charles D. Kaier , birth name Anselm Troian Kaier , (born March 6, 1837 in Binningen, Grand Duchy of Baden , † 1899 ) was a German brewer and founder of the Charles D. Kaier Company .

biography

Kier's parents were the blacksmith Andreas Kaier and Cresentia Kaier (nee Wittmer). He emigrated with them and his four siblings to the United States in 1857. The family settled in Norristown , Pennsylvania . Shortly after their arrival, Kaier changed his first name from Anselm Troian to Charles D.

He later moved to St. Clair to take up a job as an apprentice baker. With the beginning of the American Civil War , Kaier signed up on April 24, 1861 in the Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Company. After three months of service, he was honorably discharged on July 29, 1861. He then moved to Mahanoy City and found a job as a sales representative for Bergner and Engel Brewery in Philadelphia .

In 1862 he founded The Chas. D. Kaier Company , a bottler, packager and distributor for various whiskey distilleries and breweries. In 1880 Kaier persuaded his cousin Franz Kaier, who was still living in Germany, to also emigrate and work for him as a master brewer. This marked the beginning of the Chas' independent brewing activity. D. Kaier Company.

In addition to his work in the brewing business, Kaier temporarily held the office of president of a local bank. He owned major stakes in the Anthracite Light, Heat & Power Company. As part of his business he bought the Opera House in Mahanoy City, a hotel with a restaurant and over forty bars.

Kaier died in 1899. The management of his company went to Kaier's wife Margaret, who passed it on to their children Mary and Charles. The chas. Despite various purchase offers, the D. Kaier Company remained in the family's possession and survived the prohibition period , in which both legal and illegal alcohol production kept afloat. Despite another surge in growth after the end of World War II , the Charles D. Kaier Company had to be sold in 1966 and closed two years later.

family

Kaier married on January 8, 1863 the teacher Margaret Curry (* unknown; † 1913), a daughter of Irish immigrants. The couple had seven children who reached adulthood:

  • Ella
  • Josephine
  • Margaret
  • Mary
  • Cresentia
  • Charles F.
  • Amelia

Three other children died early: Bridget, Anna and Troian Anselm.

The husbands of daughters Josephine, Margaret and Mary worked intermittently in Kaier's company.

literature

  • David G. Moyer (2009), American Breweries of the Past , Bloomington (Indiana): AuthorHouse, pp. 54–55 (English)

Web links

  • Kaier's Brewery History , also published in: American Breweriana Journal , Vol. 115, January / February 2002, (English), accessed September 20, 2015.

Remarks

  1. ↑ From the sources it is not clear whether it is the district of Binningen in Baienfurt or Hilzingen .
  2. ↑ One source gives the year 1854.
personal data
SURNAME Kaier, Charles D.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kaier, Anselm Troian
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Brewer and liquor manufacturer
DATE OF BIRTH March 6, 1837
PLACE OF BIRTH Binningen ( Baienfurt or Hilzingen )
DATE OF DEATH 1899